School Governance
Every school has some form of governing body which works with the Headteacher to improve educational and other outcomes for all pupils.
A governing board has three key functions:
- To set the strategic direction of the school.
- To hold school leaders to account, acting as a “critical friend”.
- To oversee financial performance and management of the school.
Lancaster Lane Governing Board
We are fortunate currently to have a strong mix of both experienced and recently appointed governors who bring with them a range of skills from their personal and professional lives, including I.T, legal, educational and local governance. Our governors’ knowledge of the local community is also important. Above all, their commitment and enthusiasm to ensure Lancaster Lane provides the best possible education and enrichment to all our children is vital.
Click the link to see our governing board and their roles:
Categories of Governor
There are 15 places on our governing board as follows:
- 5 x Parent Governors. (Elected by parents/carers of pupils when a space becomes available.)
- 7 x Co-opted Governors. (Selected/appointed by the full governing board.)
- 1 x Staff Governor. (Elected by school staff.)
- 1 x Head Teacher. (Entitled to attend governor meetings in any event in their capacity as H.T.)
- 1 x Local Authority Governor. (Recommended by the local authority and appointed by the full governing board.)
Work of The Governing Board
Lancaster Lane’s governing board is committed to supporting and challenging the Headteacher and her staff in their continuing drive to raise standards and to ensure every child becomes a lifelong learner with high aspirations.
Meetings and Committees
The full governing board meets once each full term.
Additionally, governors are asked to sit on one or both of our main committees, which also meet once per term: Resources (monitoring school budget, pupil numbers, etc.) and Standards & Effectiveness (monitoring curriculum development, progress and attainment, etc.). Some governors also sit on smaller committees, which generally meet once per year.
Governors are also invited to take on the role of “nominated governor” for a particular aspect of school life – examples include Wellbeing and Inclusion. Safeguarding is another specific role, which is central to all we do. Governors regularly visit school and prepare reports to inform the full governing board.
Finally, there are occasional working parties set up for governors to address particular issues or projects which may arise.
Our attendance at meetings information can be found below:
Diversity of our Board
The governors are currently collecting data on the diversity of the board, including data on age, gender and ethnicity. They will use that data to inform their recruitment and training needs and ensure there is a diverse range of perspectives around the table to support robust decision making.
Due to our relatively small governing body we do not publish this diversity data online as individual governors could be identified and we have a legal obligation to protect their personal data.
Interested in Becoming a Governor?
Governors have the opportunity to gain a tremendous insight into the workings of school and to make a valuable contribution to the education of our next generation - a highly rewarding role. If you are interested in finding out more about the role of governors or how to apply to become one, please contact our Headteacher Mrs Hankin in school or email our Chair of Governors (Hilary Harrington) at h.harrington@lancasterlane.lancs.sch.uk.